"Thump thump thump~" The sound of Charles' boots stomping on the ground rang out in the empty corridor.
Normally, the Governor's Mansion on Hope Island was deserted. Maids and servants would come in when necessary for cleaning, but most of them did not need to stay in the Governor's Mansion.
"Lily? Are you in there?" Charles pushed open the kitchen door and found that the little girl was not eating secretly inside.
"Strange, where did this little girl go?" Charles had searched the Governor's Mansion but couldn't find his gunner.
I've been a bit busy lately. Now that I think about it, there seemed to be something wrong with Lily since she came back. She often disappeared for a whole day and I didn't know what she was doing.
Charles walked to a rat hole next to the door and kicked the side of the hole with his foot. "Where is your boss?"
There was no response from inside the cave.
"Could it be that I have reached my rebellious phase?" At this moment Charles suddenly thought that in addition to these places, there was another place he had not found.
He walked quickly to his bedroom, grabbed the bed sheet and lifted it, and saw the familiar figure under the bed.
The little mouse sat in front of a book, reading it attentively.
"Lily?" Charles, kneeling on one knee, knocked on the bed frame with his steel prosthesis.
The little mouse turned around and slowly crawled out of the bed on all fours. "Mr. Charles..."
Charles was a little surprised to see Lily looking so depressed. He held up the little mouse in his hands and stroked her furry head with his fingers.
"What's wrong? Are you still sad for the doctor? Don't be sad. Birth, aging, sickness and death are inevitable for everyone. Besides, he can live to 98 years old in this crazy world. It's already a good ending."
Hearing this, Lily's body trembled slightly, and she kept nudging her little head towards Charles' fingers.
Charles reached out and picked up the book that Lily was reading, glancing at the cover.
"The author of Earthsea is really straightforward in choosing the title of the book," Charles said with a smile.
He flipped through it casually and found, as expected, that it was another clichéd love story, and in terms of plot, the scenes in the governor's daughter's bedroom appeared quite frequently.
"Lily, why do you always like to read this kind of books? This kind of book is not something you should read at your age."
Who knew that these words seemed to irritate Lily, and tears rolled down from the corners of Lily's eyes, and her high-pitched voice sounded very aggrieved.
"Why can't I even watch what you and your monster sister can do! Even though mom said girls can't say these things, I just want to say them! I just want to watch! I'm a mouse, so why should I be shy!!"
Charles was a little frightened by Lily's excitement. This was the first time the little girl had lost her temper with him in all the years they had known each other.
He held out his hand in an attempt to comfort her, but to his surprise, Lily jumped right off his hand.
"I'm not your little pet, I'm a human! I want to live a normal life like you guys!!"
Looking at her clenched little paws, Charles knew that she was really a little angry.
"Okay, Lily, what do you want me to do?"
"Don't talk to me in that tone! I'm not a child anymore! I don't want you to coax me, talk to me in a normal tone, just like when you talked to that monster sister!!"
Lily's tears kept rolling down her face. She waved her little paws and cried hysterically to Charles, "You always say that, but you always treat me like a child! I'm not a child anymore!! But I'm almost old and dying!!"
“I’m almost dying of old age!!!”
“I’m almost dying of old age!!!”
“I’m almost dying of old age!!!”
Lily's voice kept echoing in Charles' mind, and his heart gradually began to panic.
Charles, his body tense, pounced on her, grabbed Lily tightly in his hands and looked at her carefully.
Her hair was falling out, her whiskers were drooping, and her skin was loose. All signs indicated that Lily's life was coming to an end, just like the doctor had said.
"When did this happen? Lily, think carefully, how long has it been since you turned into a mouse?"
Seeing Charles so nervous, Lily felt even more aggrieved, and she leaned her head against Charles's arms and started crying. "Wow, Mr. Charles, I'm really scared~"
Charles didn't dare to waste any time. He grabbed Lily and rushed out.
As soon as Charles walked out of the Governor's Mansion, he saw three members of the Church of Light coming to greet him. "Governor, the Pope said that it's okay for you not to leave in the short term, but you must at least set a definite time, right?"
"Get out of here! I don't have time to deal with this now. The sailing plan is postponed indefinitely!" Charles jumped onto the roof next to him and rushed quickly towards Linda's residence.
On the top floor of a four-story apartment, Charles found the ship's doctor enjoying afternoon tea.
When the bald woman learned about Lily's condition from Charles, her expression immediately became serious. She quickly took out the medical box in the room and began to examine Lily carefully.
Watching Linda looking at Lily's teeth and then putting the stethoscope on her chest, Charles' heart couldn't help but reach its highest point.
When Charles saw Linda stop what she was doing, he asked nervously, "Linda, how is Lily doing?"
"She has entered old age, but that doesn't mean she's going to die soon. I don't know what kind of mouse Lily is or how long she has left to live. Judging from her current physical condition, if she's well cared for, she should be able to live another four months."
Charles' heart relaxed and then tightened again. Although Lily would not die for the time being, she would still die of old age in four months. He had to find a way to save Lily within these four months.
"Do you have any solution? Has the doctor taught you any special methods?" Charles asked Linda nervously.
"Captain, this is impossible. There is no cure for aging. If there really was a cure, the teacher wouldn't have died like this."
Charles found himself a little anxious and confused, actually asking a doctor about such a thing.
Without saying a word, he grabbed Lily and rushed outside.
The first place he planned to go was the Navy Headquarters, hoping to find a solution with the help of the intelligence department, but Lily's words made him stop.
"Mr. Charles, it's no use. I asked the big guy to help me look for it a long time ago, but I found nothing. When you didn't come back, I asked my mouse friends to go out to various islands to find a solution, but they still had no news."
(End of this chapter)